First Year Observing Advent - Any Advice?

I have used the following Jesse Tree kit in the past (link below). It has daily ornaments that you can photocopy and your child can cut out and color. It does come with a paper tree poster you can color or decorate. But we didn't use ours. Instead I bought a miniature pine and hung them on that. Another year, we bought a Jesse wooden tree (looks like a mitten rack) made specifically for displaying ornaments. I have also seen people just use twigs and boughs from their yard mounted in a flower pot or on wooden slats too.

For the kit see:

http://www.amazon.com/Jesse-Tree-Kit-Lynn-Simms/dp/081983...

I have also used the following books for daily activity ideas for advent:

http://www.amazon.com/Joy-World-Advent-Activities-Family/...

http://www.amazon.com/Things-Make-Do-Advent-Christmas/dp/...

http://www.amazon.com/Advent-Arts-Christmas-Crafts-Prayer...

You can buy pre-made Jesse Trees from the following sites:

www.stpatricksguild.com
www.christianbook.com
www.adoremusbooks.com

And one year we used this Advent calendar on dvd, which was fun for the older kids (6 and up) as well as the big people. :) Each day there is a 3-5 minute video highlighting saints, traditions, stories and prayers in preparation for Christmas.

http://www.amazon.com/Advent-Calendar-DVD-Christmas-Count...

Advent wreaths for Sunday observance are nice too. There are some pretty cute felt ones that use no fire if you have that concern with your little one.

See:

http://www.amazon.com/Fabric-Advent-Wreath-%252d-9%2522/d...

Hope this helps and have fun celebrating the season.

I would also get an advent wreath, which is a wreath with 4 candles, 3 purple & 1 pink, that sits on your dining room table. Each evening you say special prayers (they will be on a printout with your wreath) and light one of the candles. Every Sunday you light another candle, until you are finally at the 4th week of advent and have all 4 lit.

http://www.leafletonline.com/Advent-Items/products/177/

We do different things. In our home, I have an Advent wreath and the church gives out a book with devotionals in it. We don't do anything about a Jesse tree, so I can't comment on that.

Every week at dinner, I read the devotional to my DD (also 3) and I light the candle for that week. Last year I also tried teaching her a song I knew from childhood that goes "candle, candle, burning bright, shining in the cold winter's night. Candle, candle, burning bright, fill our hearts with Christmas light". You can Google for the whole song.

Usually the devotionals include something for every night, but for DD I focus on each week. She has been fascinated by the candles since she was a baby.

We also have a 24 day calendar that we move the marker between the pockets, and while that's not a religious thing (though we had one with Christian symbols when I was a kid), DD really likes to do that.

When my children were growing up we tried various things.

Do what you think your son can handle best. Unwrapping pre-made ornaments could be a nice surprise (like opening an early Christmas present - but no, it's Advent, and here's what Advent and the ornament are about...). On the other hand, a Jesse tree with hand-colored ornaments on it sounds wonderful! You'll want to take a picture of it.

Remember that toddlers don't have great attention spans - oh, I bet you already knew that! So having something to do during the devotions could be a great idea, especially if you're doing this as a family. Make it short and sweet.

I hope this Advent will be especially wonderful at your house. I think you're on the right track with it.

Our church also has special Advent services each week. Check those out. We always go to Christmas Eve "midnight" services, too.

Thanks so much JL from St. Paul. I too wanted some info on Advent although we did for the first time last year I was trying to think of something a bit different to look into. Thanks